Alicia I love this movie so much

Wordiezett So much average

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Catangro After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

chengiz This felt like a low budget adaptation. The sets and production values were not very good. The music was awful. Dull camerawork too and what's with the closeups? Is that to hide the poor production? Some good acting (Timothy West as Sir Leicester, Burn Gorman as Guppy, Charles Dance as Tulkinghorn, Denis Lawson as John Jarndyce) saved the series. Anna Maxwell Martin as Esther Summerson initially gives the vibe of Jennifer Ehle in the excellent Pride and Prejudice, but pretty soon it's evident she's not quite in that league. The worst acting in the miniseries is by Gillian Anderson. She must have read somewhere that a stiff neck and sideways glance and slightly open mouth makes you a lady. By the end I wanted to forward every scene she was in because I couldnt take it anymore.

runamokprods Smashingly entertaining and very moving 8 hour adaptation of the Dickens's classic, made for the BBC. Terrific performances in just about every role, with special note given to Gillian Anderson's amazingly complex Lady Dedlock. But Dennis Lawson and Charles Dance are also great, and the supporting cast is full of actors who get Dickens' tone just right; a touch larger and more colorful than life, but always real enough to believe in, care about, be frightened by or pity. I also liked that the young leads were played by actors who really did look young, so their naiveté never comes off as forced or phony. Beyond that, the photography is beautiful, as is the production and costume design. Full of directorial quirks that make the story feel energetic and modern, without feeling intrusive. The hand held cameras, swish pans, zooms serve to feed the energy of the story. Only towards the end of the series is there a little too much repetition of some of these tricks, causing them to lose some power, and become a touch annoying. But standing against all the strong elements, that's a very small fly in the ointment indeed.

drarthurwells Nearly all aspects of the production of 'Bleak House' (2005) are first rate - direction, casting, sets and costumes, cinematography, acting, organization and pacing of the storyline. The musical accompaniment is quite good. You will never find a better group of acting performances in any single cinematic work - many of the characterizations, such as Burn Gorman's performance as Guppy and Charles Dance's as Tulkinghorn, are simply priceless and unequaled. Martin as Esther and Mulligan as Ada, the two young girls at the center of the story, give wonderful performances.The first parts give the foundation of the story which becomes most engrossing in the second half. The viewer should have patience and stick with it beyond the introductory foundation. Those viewers out side of England (or Britain) may require some adaption to the Victorian customs and mode of relating to one another. Once the viewer adopts this mindset the work is more readily appreciated.A realistic glimpse into history as well as thoroughly involving top-rate entertainment.

Irving Warner You rarely see television OR movie writing this good. "Bleak House" was a landmark transfer of a Dickens novel to the small screen. It must have really suffered, i.e. all sliced up in short episodes; therefore, I consider myself lucky indeed to have seen it on DVD. I was able to let it roll for long-time periods. And I did! The production design, costumes, and things related are outstanding; the photography was also superior. But it is the writing and the acting, when put together, that enabled "Bleak House" to rise way above most other television and screen work. The positive characters are your usual Dickens characters, almost too good to be believed, but writer Andrew Davis handled that very well. It was the rich assortment of villains,e.g. human ragbags, diverse lowlifes -- along with some outright criminals-- that just overwhelmed me. Special mention must be given to Charles Dance (Mr. Tulkington), Philip Davis (Smallweed), Burn Gorman (Guppy) and Nathaniel Parker (Skimpole) for assembling into one of the greatest most repugnant, morally reprehensible group of humans that ever populated a single television or movie production. This, once again, proved that a drama is only as good as its villains! Boy, the television adaption of "Bleak House" went a long ways to prove that. Hats off to this wonderful creative drama.